Aussie drivers warned as costly new road trend leads to panel beater backlog
Numerous reports have emerged in recent times of drivers around the country colliding with animals, causing issues for both vehicles and the panel beaters tasked with repairing them. Deer, an introduced environmental pest, continue to be a growing problem, with their expansion now spilling into urban areas, seeing them regularly wander onto train tracks and other transport thoroughfares.
Kangaroos are another threat to safety, with the animals known for jumping out onto roads as they spread in search of food. With reserves "drying off", kangaroos are increasingly moving to roadsides "to get access to green feed", conservationists say.
In Canberra, these incidents are becoming more and more common, and vehicle repairers warn that even if a driver avoids hitting an animal directly, there are still several risks.
"They miss the animal but then they hit the tree, or the guardrail or another car," Alison Hickey, of Barrett Brothers Smash Repairs, told WIN News Canberra. She said people often don't realise there's damage to their cars because it may not be immediately visible at first glance. "There's nothing leaking out the bottom, but the fan is hitting on the radiator, and there are broken bits everywhere," she said.
Repairs are costing drivers several thousand dollars, leaving many without vehicles for up to a month, while creating a backlog among panel beaters. Data from ACT Parks and Conservation reveal there have been 650 callouts to crashes involving eastern grey kangaroos this year alone, WIN reported.
Official ACT data shows that by the end of 2024, there were 3,545 callouts for the year, while in 2023 there were 3,336.
There have been nine wombat collisions in the territory this year, a significant decrease from the 2024 year total of 179, although deer collisions continue to rise.
Just last week, dashcam footage captured the shocking moment two drivers almost collided with a deer darting across a road in Canberra. The video, filmed "in the middle" of the road, shows the large animal suddenly appearing on a grass median strip. It bolted across two lanes of traffic, just metres in front of startled motorists.
Days later, another deer was spotted on train tracks in Eastwood, in Sydney's northwest.
Meanwhile, in South Australia, there have been more than 2,100 insurance claims for accidents involving a kangaroo in the last year. The stark figure marks a 44 per cent increase compared to two years earlier, with the state's recent dry weather conditions believed to be driving the animals closer to roads in search of food. Recent photos emerging online show dozens of kangaroos on the road in country SA, reflecting the scale of the issue in the outback.
Royal Automobile Association (RAA) Senior Manager of Road Safety, Charles Mountain, warned drivers that kangaroos are notoriously unpredictable, meaning motorists should remain on high alert when travelling through their known habitat.
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"There is a clear trend that kangaroo collisions are increasing across the state as more animals come towards busy roads in search of food. Kangaroos in particular are unpredictable creatures that can seemingly come out of nowhere and pose a significant safety risk," he said.
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